A cartridge heater is a heating element which includes an outer metal enclosure or sheath which contains a resistive heating element or wiring separated from the sheath by electrical insulation. The cartridge heater may be positioned in a cartridge heater assembly which includes a connector, a printed circuit board and the cartridge heater. The cartridge heater is electrically connected to the printed circuit board by means of terminals or wires which must be soldered to the printed circuit board. This can be an expensive and time consuming. In addition, the geometry of the assembly is limited due to the fact that soldering must be accommodated.
It would, therefore, be beneficial to provide a cartridge heater and cartridge heater assembly which can be easily assembled and which does not require soldering to a printed circuit board. In particular, it would be beneficial to provide a cartridge heater which has terminals or electrical contact members provided thereon which can engage and make mechanical and electrical connection with the printed circuit board utilizing press fit technology.